


Innocence

by Causa



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-22
Updated: 2015-06-22
Packaged: 2018-04-05 16:46:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 675
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4187337
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Causa/pseuds/Causa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Pearl, can I ask you a question?”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Innocence

Pearl was folding laundry when Steven approached her. 

“Pearl, can I ask you a question?”

“Of course, Steven,” she said, eyes focused on the task in front of her. 

“So you and my mom—you fused?”

The coarseness of the fabric touching her fingers felt overwhelmingly rough, then, threatening to poke through the warm blanket of memory that had wrapped itself around her; she set the shirt in her hands down and looked to Steven, who was looking at her with eager eyes. 

“Yes,” she said, tempering her quivering voice. “Lots of times.” 

“What was it like?”

“It was _wonderful,_ ” she said before blushing deeper. “You know what fusion feels like.” 

“Yeah,” said Steven with a shrug. “It was nice, but—weird too.”

“It was strange the first few times—then it just felt natural.” 

“Really?” Steven said. 

Pearl nodded.

“What was the longest you fused for?” 

“Not as long as I’d have liked,” she said with a small laugh. “The longest was after…” 

Pearl looked above, her gaze flitting to the framed picture of the woman in question, whose large and lovely eyes were staring at back her wherever she looked. 

“—Not very long,” she said. “Longer than you and Connie, of course.” 

“Do you think Connie and I could fuse for a long time?” 

“I—I’m still not comfortable with the two of you fusing at all, Steven.” 

“Why not?” 

Pearl did not see Garnet anywhere. “What do the two of you want to fuse for?”

Steven shrugged and looked down. “I just wanted to know, just in case something happened…like if more of the gems come back…”

“You shouldn’t worry about that, Steven,” Pearl said. “If they do, this time you won’t be anywhere near them.”

“Pearl!” 

“You could’ve died on that ship, Steven,” she said after a long pause, the pressure of his questioning eyes causing her to take a small step away from him. “We were lucky we managed to get off of it.”

“Because of me,” Steven said with slight indignation. “I was the only one who could open the cells.”

“If you hadn’t been on the ship you wouldn’t have needed to get off of it, Steven,” said Pearl sweetly, crossing her arms. 

Fear twisted his face, his lips contorting as Rose’s did. “Then you’d still be on the ship—and—and maybe…maybe dead!” 

“Steven,” said Pearl softly, kneeling and placing her hands on his shoulders, unable to look into her— _his_ —eyes, “that doesn’t matter now.” 

“It _does_ matter!” Steven exclaimed, his voice shaking.

_"Death is part of war, Rose. I knew that when I agreed to come with you—so did everyone else. We would all love to die for—”_

_“Oh, Pearl, I don’t want you to die! I don’t want anyone to—”_

_Her tears hit the ground with the ferocity of thunder. You know how she is, you should’ve said something different—anything different. Something comforting. What was comforting in this? Pearl’s mind froze._

_“Are we doing the right thing, Pearl? I don’t know how much more I can stand.”_

_Well, we started with a thousand and we’re down to 600, but Homeworld’s casualties are nearly doubled what ours are, so if we continue at this rate, we’ll have a small chance—but a chance—to defeat the army _and_ keep at least 100 gems alive. Of course, none of that matters, really, as long as Rose is alive. But she doesn’t like that. She is too modest to acknowledge that her life is worth more than anyone else’s. So none of this will comfort her in the slightest. _

_“Of—of course we are.”_  
  
“Steven—”

 _He is too young, too young to grasp the concepts that she tries to hide from him, that Garnet is too lax with and that Amethyst is more than willing to share._

“We’ll be fine, Steven. You, and me, and Connie, and Garnet, and Amethyst. You have nothing to worry about.”

“Y—yeah?” Steven sniffled. 

She ran a hand through his soft hair and smiled gently. “Yes, Steven.”


End file.
